Montana State Championship 2020
This has been a year of extremes, and the Montana state championship was no exception. I came into the tournament feeling confident because this was my ninth (!) consecutive rodeo here, so I had more experience than everyone else put together. I also did two things that are highly unusual for me: I cracked open some books, and I abstained from alcohol for an entire week (including the Friday evening before playing on Saturday). On top of all that, the tournament was in one of my favorite venues, the Finlen Hotel in Butte. The hotel and the entire town have a haunting, historic feel that resonates with me.
But whenever I think I have chess or life figured out, they throw me another curveball. I had difficulty concentrating and played horrendously in the first round, handing the defending champ Dorje McPherron an easy win. This was the first time I ever had lost in the first round or to Dorje in a rated game. It felt crushing, but I've had this feeling many times before and knew exactly what I had to do -- strap on my boots and go back to war.
I won all of my remaining games to achieve my highest score ever at the Closed, 4 points, and in so doing I gave my rating a shot in the arm to stay above 1900 (it will be 1921 now). Along the way I allowed myself to have a drink or two and realized that I play my best when I'm having fun. This is a game that is meant to be enjoyed, like a fine wine, so when I regained that perspective I was back in the driver's seat. My hat is off to Dorje because he went on to score 4.5 points and retain the title, which he fully deserves.
The tournament was bittersweet for another reason: it's unknown when we and the other players from around the state can see each other again. It already was a stretch to organize this small event, where we had to wear masks for hours on end. In a world spiraling out of control, social rituals are vital to preserving sanity, and we will do our level best to organize another tournament before the year is out.
By the way, several of the matches were live-streamed and can be viewed on the MCA's Facebook page. If anyone is starved for sports action, check it out! Although there's not much to hear, there is often some witty banter at the end of each game.
In the second round I faced Thomas Walthall, a teenager who has become a Montana chess celebrity for establishing himself as the strongest high-school player in the state. Thomas handed me a string of losses in online speed play just a couple of weeks ago, and he caught me napping once in a game/30 at Greg's club, but this was the first time we sat down for a long game at a rated tournament. He allowed me to play one of my favorite openings, the Budapest, and he wound up walking into a buzz saw. When I examined the game afterwards, I noticed that I could have won even faster but overlooked it because of my longstanding habits with this opening. That's when I decided to go ahead and have a beer with dinner before plunging into the third round.
In the third round I confronted Daniel Mattson, my Billings friend who handed me a painful upset at the Open in Great Falls. This game was so tough that I had moments when I stared at the board and had no idea what to do. Luckily, I found a way to win even though I dropped a pawn in the endgame, and then I retired to a local bar for a drink with my other buddy Darren Stacey (whom I would confront over the board the next day).
Sunday morning I felt refreshed, relaxed, and eager to have some fun. My upbeat attitude broke the curse that often hangs over the second day of my tournaments. In the fourth round I faced MCA President Kevin Kuehnel, who played very well in the Open and was a surprise entry for the Closed.
In the final round I faced Darren Stacey, the man who swept Greg's recent invitational tournament (and swept me right off the board at that event). He hadn't lost a single game in this tournament yet, and he was the only one who could slow Dorje down by holding him to a draw. But today was my day. Everything was clicking, and I had come too far since my first round disaster against Dorje to blow it. When the smoke cleared and I emerged victorious, I felt happier than I have all year long. It made no difference that Dorje came out ahead. We kept the crown in Missoula, plus I salvaged my rating after it had been slip-sliding down in every tournament since January. Like my man Rocky Balboa once remarked, it's not about how hard you can hit -- it's about how hard you can GET hit and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done.
